Stack turn-over apparatus



Feb. 24, 1970 J. F LITTER STACK TURN-OVER APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheetv 1 Filed Nm',A 20, 196'? ATTORNEY Feb. 24, v,1970 I J.\F| |1TER 3,497,032

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ATTORNEY Feb. 24,1970 .1.4 FLITTER 3,497,032 l STACK TURN-OVER APPARATUS Filed Nov. 20,l 1967 I 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 ATTORNEY Feb. 24," 1970 J. FLITTER 3,497,032

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ATTORNEY United States Patent O 3,497,082 STACK TURN-OVER APPARATUS Joseph Flitter, deceased, late of La Porte, Ind., by Joseph D. Anderson, executor, 818 Odd Fellow Bldg., South Bend, Ind. 46601 Filed Nov. 20, 1967, Ser. No. 684,569 Int. Cl. B21b 39/20 U.S. Cl. 214-1 7 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A stack turn-over apparatus in which a rotary stack support is mounted within a pair of rings on a base and a motor rotates the support 180 to invert a stack of sheet material or the like inserted therein, The stack of sheet material is clamped within the rings by a stationary plate and a movable plate, the movable plate having a means for applying pressures substantially equally to the stack of sheet material.

In certain types of printing presses flat sheets of paper or material come oif the press printed on only one side and the sheets are stacked automatically into relatively large piles which are then reversed or inverted and the sheets rerun through the press to print the opposite sides of the sheets. Various types of apparatus have been used in the past to invert the pile, these apparatus usually consisting of a platform for receiving the pile supported on a skid or the like, and a clamping means for holding the sheets of the pile firmly together while the apparatus inverts the platform, A skid, which is normally placed on top of the stack before it is inverted, then becomes the support for the pile which is returned to the press for the nal printing operation. These prior apparatus have had certain inherent disadvantages which have rendered them unsatisfactory, including inconvenience in loading and unloading, complicated and bulky operating mechanisms, lack of versatility under various normal operating conditions, and inability to effectively and dependably handle relatively large piles or loads without the use of excessively large operating mechanisms. It is therefore one of the principal objects of the present invention to pro- -vide a stack or skid inverter which is so constructed and designed that the weight of the stack is equalized or balanced in the mechanism so that the structural and operating parts thereof are relatively small and dependable and the overall machine relatively compact, and which can handle large stacks quickly and efficiently.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stack turn-over apparatus which can be loaded and unloaded from the same position or loaded on one side and unloaded from the other side, and which is so constructed and designed that it can readily be installed where it is most convenient to load and unload while the press is in operation.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a relatively simple, easily controlled stack inverter of the aforementioned type which can be operated without special skill or training and without the use of special equipment or tools.

A further object is to provide an apparatus of the aforementioned type having plates which engage the top and bottom ends of the stack to hold the sheets together and to maintain the stack as a unitary pile, and which are controlled to engage the ends of the stack uniformly and to equalize the pressure applied to those ends.

Additional objects an advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE l is a perspective view of the present stack turnover apparatus, showing it in a position to receive ICC rkstack of sheet material from a printing press or the FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the opposite side of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational View of the apparatus shown in the preceding figures;

FIGURE 4 is an end elevational view of the apparatus;

FIGURE 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the apparatus, the section being taken on line 5-5 of FIG- URE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged fragmentary cross sectional view, the section being taken on line 6 6 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a top plan View of the base of the present apparatus; and

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary cross sectional view, the section being taken on line 8-8 of FIGURE 3.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, and to FIGURE l in particular, numeral 10 designates generally the present stack turn-over apparatus, 12 the rotary support for receiving the stack of sheet material to be inverted, and 14 a base on which the rotary support is mounted. The present apparatus, while designed primarily to invert stacks of sheet material from a printing press so that both sides of the sheet can be printed in the press in the normal manner, can be used to invert other types of sheet material or articles, containers or the like, without any appreciable change being required in the basic structure of the apparatus.

The rotating support consists of two ring-like frame members 30 and 32 joined together by cross members 33, 34, 35, and 36, and by cross members 37 and 38, member 37 being connected to members 39 and 40 within rings 30 and 32, and member 38 being joined to members 42 and 44. Members 39, l40, 42 and 44 are welded or otherwise joined at their ends to the inner surface of the respective rings. The foregoing cross members, in conjunction with members 39, 40, 42 and 44, are joined to one another to form, along with rings 30 and 32, a rigid rotating support structure, so that fthe two rings rotate together and in rigid spaced relation to one another. The two rings and the interconnecting members are preferably formed of steel, and the frame of the rotary support is adapted to rotate on the two rings, as will be more fully explained hereinafter.

A stack receiving platform or plate 50 is rigidly mounted in the frame of the rotary support member with the two ends supported by cross members 52 and 53 and reinforcing members 54 and 55 on the two rings. The plate, cross and reinforcing members are rigidly joined together and connected to the rings to form a rigid structure therewith. An adjustable platform or plate `60 is mounted in the frame of the rotary support and is supported therein by arms '62, 64, 66 and 68 connected to end members 70 and 72 joined rigidly to the respective ends of plate 60. Each of the arms 62, 64, 66 and 68 is pivoted by a fixture 74 and pin 76 extending through the end of the respective arm and through the xture to pivotally connect the arm to the respective members 70 and 72, and in eifect, to plate `60. The opposite end of each lever is connected to a shaft 78 or 80, and each end of each shaft is journalled in a bearing 82 supported in cross members 84 and 86 at one end, or `88 and 90 at the other end. The means for connecting the ends of the arms y62, 64, 66 and 68 are fixedly secured to shafts 78 and 80 so that the upper section 92 of each arm moves radially as the respective shaft rotates and thereby moves arm section 94 to control the position of the respective corner of plate 60. The two shafts are connected for movement in unison by a pair of gears 96 and 98 secured to the two shafts and intermeshing, as clearly seen in FIGURE 5. As the two shafts are rotated in unison by the two gears at each end of the shafts,

sections 92 of the various arms move angularly upwardly y and downwardly together, -thus moving sections 94 of `the arms upwardly and downwardly together. This arrangement of levers results in equalized movement of the plate from corner to corner, and facilitates applying a uniform pressure to a stack of paper placed in the rotary support.

lPlate 60 is power operated by hydraulic cylinders 100i, 102, 104 and 106, one end of cylinders 100 and 102 being connected to cross member 37 by fixtures 108 and 110, and one end of cylinders 104 and 106 being connected to cross member 38 by xtures 112 and 114. rl`he piston rods of cylinders 100 and 102 are connected to the Irespective end of cross members 70 and 72 by fixtures 116 and 118, and the piston rods of cylinders 104 and 106 are connected to the ends of members 70 and 72 by fixtures 120 and 122. The four cylinders are connected to a common hydraulic system through conduits to a control station 130 so that all four cylinders operate in unison to apply substantially equal pressure to al1 four corners of plate 60, and consequently to the respective end of a stack of sheet material in the rotary support. The control station includes a hydraulic valve 132 controlled by levers 134 and 136, and the hydraulic pressure is supplied by a hydraulic pump 140 driven by an electrical motor 142. In order to position the stack Vertically and hold it in place, guides 150 and 152 are mounted within rings 30 and 32 on -members 39 and 40. These guides are moved to and from a stack of sheet material in the rotary support by hydraulic cylinders 154 and 156 for guide 150 and cylinders 158 and 160 for guide 152, controlled by the main control valve 132 at station 130. The cylinders are connected to the respective rin-gs 30 and 32, and the piston rods thereof are connected to the respective guides. As the rotating support rotates, the two guides 150 and 152 support the stack of sheet material and prevent it from becoming disoriented throughout the movement of the support.

The rotary support 12 is .mounted on base 14 consisting of side frame members 170 and 172 and end frame members 174 and 176, the side members being joined at their ends to the end members to form a rigid structure, with the frame thus formed preferably being supported on legs 178 at each corner thereof. The rotary support is rotatably mounted on rollers 180, 182, 184 and 186, rollers 180 and 184 supporting ring 30 and rollers 182 and 18'6 supporting ring 32. Rollers 180 and 182 are mounted on a shaft 188 journalled in bearings 190 and 191 at each end thereof and rollers 184 and 186 are mounted on shaft 192 supported by bearings 194 and 195 at each end thereof. The four rollers, which normally rotate with their respective shafts, are freely rotatable a-nd permit free rotation of the rotary support, as will be more fully explained hereinafter. The rotary support is held on the base in rotatable relation by four fixtures 196, 197, 198 and 199 mounted on frame members 170 and 172, each having a roller 200 for engaging the edge of respective rings 30 and 32 so that the rings are guided in base 14 as they rotate on the four rollers.

The rotary support is driven by a motor 201 through a gear reduction unit 202, belt 204, and sprockets 206 and 208 on the gear reduction unit and on the end of shaft 188. As shaft 188 is driven by motor 201, both rollers 180 and 182 are rotated, thereby rotating the rotary support from one position to the position inverting the stack of sheet mateiral held therein. The motors 142 and 201 are controlled at electrical control box 210, and the rotary support is automatically stopped at the desired position by switches 212 and 214 operated by ngers 216 and 218 mounted on cross members 33 and 35 between rings 30 and 32.

In the operation of the present stack turn-over apparatus, the stack of sheet material, such as the paper leaving a printing press with one side printed, is slid onto platform or plate 50 in the proper position near the center thereof, and the guides and 152 are extended to engage the side of the stack and align it in the proper vertical position with respect to the platform. Cylinders 100, 102, 104 and 106 are then operated to move plate 60 downwardly until it engages the upper end of the stack firmly, thereby clamping the stack between plates 50 and 60. With the stack held rigidly 4between the two plates and against the two guide members, the motor is operated to drive rollers and 182, thereby rotating rotary support 12 from the position shown in FIGURE 1 to the position at which plate 60 is at the bottom. Since the guide members give support to the stack of material, the rotary support is preferably rotated in the direction to move the guides downwardly beneath the stack and to a vertical position on the opposite side of the rotary support when plate 60 is at the bottom. After the stack has been inverted in the foregoing manner, cylinders 100, 102, 104 and 106 are operated to retract plate 60. Since plate 60 is at the bottom, the stack follows it downwardly as it is withdrawn, thus separating the upper end of the stack from the now underside of plate 50. The stack can then easily be removed from the apparatus from either side, preferably after guides 150 and 152 have been retracted to their original position. The rotary support is again operated to return it to its original position with plate 50 at the bottom. Since the stopping of the plate in both positions is automatically controlled by switches 212 and 214, the operator merely needs to start the motor when the inversion operation is to take place.

One of the advantages of the present apparatus is the uniform application of pressure to the stack =by the operation of the four arms 62, 64, 66 and 68 in conjunction with the intermeshing gears on the ends of shafts 78 and 80. This structure provides a uniform pressure which holds the stack in proper place without distorting or damaging the sheet material positioned therebetween. Plates 50 and 60 may be, in effect, a segment of a conveyor, such as a roller conveyor, and the terms plate and platform as used in this application shall be construed to include and cover such modifications.

While only one embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail herein, various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A stack inverting apparatus comprising a rotary support for a stack of sheet material or the like having a pair of rings on a common horizontal axis, a fixed platform and a movable platform supported by said rings and movable between an upper horizontal position and a lower horizontal position as said rings rotate 180, arms connected to the corners of said movable platform, means interconnecting the opposite ends of said arms for guiding said movable platform forward and away from the stack, four power cylinders connected to said movable platform in spaced relation on said rotary support for operating said platform, a base for said rotary support, and power means for rotating said support on said base.

2. A stack inverting apparatus as defined in claim 1 in which said rotary support is mounted on a base having a plurality of spaced rollers for each of said rings and means for driving one roller of each of said rings.

3. A stack inverting apparatus comprising a rotary support for a stack of sheet material or the like having a pair of rings on a common horizontal axis, a fixed platform and a movable platform supported by said rings and movable between an upper horizontal position and a lower horizontal position as said rings rotate 180, said platform being rectangular and having two edges of the platform parallel with the axis of said rings, arms connected to the corners of said movable platform, means Iincluding intermeshing gears interconnecting the opposite ends of said arms for guiding said movable platform toward and away from the stack, a base for said rotary support, and power means for rotating said support on said base.

4. A stack inverting apparatus as dened in claim 3 in which said rotary support is mounted on a base having a plurality of spaced rollers for each of said rings and means for driving one roller of each of said rings.

5. A stack inverting apparatus as dened in claim 4 in which a control means responsive to the position of said rotary support controls said power means to interrupt the rotation of the support at a predetermined position.

6. A stack inverting apparatus as dened in claim 5 in which a pair of spaced guide means is movable transverse to the movement of said movable platform for retaining a stack in said rotary support in proper position while the support is in operation.

7. A stack inverting apparatus comprising a rotary support for a stack of sheet material or the like having a pair of rings on a common horizontal axis, a fixed platform and a movable platform supported by said rings and movable between an upper horizontal position and a lower horizontal position as said rings rotate 180, arms connected to the corners of said movable platform, means References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,865,516 12/1958 Hedderich. 2,984,364 5/1961 Lamb.

3,071,258 1/1963 seigh etal. 3,106,301 10/1963 Jeddeloh. 3,190,461 6/1965 Posnewai.

GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner F. E. WERNER, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl.. XR. 

